Five-bar Swordtail

The Five-bar Swordtail (Graphium antiphates), also known as the Green Black-striped Giant Jay, is a butterfly species belonging to the family Papilionidae. Native to South and Southeast Asia, it was first described by Pieter Cramer in 1775. This butterfly has a white ground color on the upper side of its wings, marked by five distinct short black bands across the forewings. Greenish shades overlay parts of the white areas, and broad black bands stretch across the wings from the costa to the tornus. The hindwings are mostly white with dark grey terminal areas and black crescent-shaped markings. The underside displays a combination of green and white with intricate black patterns, including black lunules and a prominent tornal spot. The tail is blackish-grey edged with white, and the body features a black-striped head and thorax with a white abdomen.

There are several forms and variations within this species. The alcibiades race, widespread across its range, shows shorter and narrower black markings, with separated discal and terminal bands on the forewing and reduced grey areas on the hindwing. The nebulosus form from Sikkim is a melanistic variant, while varieties like continentalis, itamputi, and ceylanicus exhibit slight differences in wing patterns and black band extensions. Overall, the species displays significant variation in the width and position of its wing markings across different regions.